'Johto Legends: Music from Pokémon Gold and Silver' hits vinyl

MATERIA COLLECTIVE

Fully funded via Kickstarter, the Pokémon tribute album Johto Legends: Music from Pokémon Gold and Silver is now available on vinyl.

The officially-licensed album gives Pokémon fans more than an hour of new music and features performances by some of the game industry's most well-known talents whose credits that include Pokémon Symphonic Evolutions and The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses as well as games like Destiny, Dragon Age, Tomb Raider, and Minecraft.

"Johto Legends is a passion project I've wanted to fulfill since I was eleven years old," comments arranger and project organizer Braxton Burks. "Almost every day after school, I'd get on the bus home and turn on my Game Boy Color, loaded with a copy of Pokémon Crystal Version. I spent countless hours headbutting trees in the Ilex Forest, exploring the remains of the Burned Tower, and tracking down the legendaries Entei, Raikou, and Suicune... but it was the game's soundtrack that really pulled me in with its memorable 8-bit melodies, an eclectic mix of romantic harmonies and Japanese folk music - the perfect backdrop for the Johto region. Sometimes I'd even imagine what the music would sound like if it were orchestrated by one of my idols, John Williams. 'I wish I could do that,' I thought. Well, I ended up carrying that dream to adulthood, fueled by my ongoing love affair with the Pokémon games that persists even to this day. I hope listeners will be able to recall their own nostalgic Pokémon journey - the battles, the towns, the routes and caves... and all the adventures in between. "

In addition to the vinyl release, Johto Legends: Music from Pokémon Gold and Silver is also available in digital and compact disc form. The album can be found on Bandcamp, Spotify, and iam8bit.